The current approach to detect if a driver has his or her hands placed on a steering wheel or hand wheel utilizes hardware. Specifically, the hardware may be one or more sensors that are placed on the hand wheel to detect if the driver's hands are positioned on the hand wheel. The signals generated by the sensors are routed to a controller and processed to make a final determination if the driver's hands are positioned on the hand wheel. For example, in one approach, capacitive touch technology may be used to detect if the driver's hands are positioned on the steering wheel. Providing additional sensors to detect if the driver's hands are positioned on the hand wheel adds cost and complexity to a steering system.